


feel the change in me tonight

by swallowsmateforlife



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Baking, Canon Compliant, Cute, Fluff without Plot, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-04
Updated: 2015-08-04
Packaged: 2018-04-13 00:43:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,757
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4501260
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/swallowsmateforlife/pseuds/swallowsmateforlife
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Baking cookies makes everything alright.</p>
            </blockquote>





	feel the change in me tonight

**Author's Note:**

  * For [ChickenandBrocolli](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ChickenandBrocolli/gifts).



> Hope you like this and think it's sweet!  
> Title from "Firestone" by Kygo.

Baking is therapeutic, Harry thinks, and he feels almost entirely at ease as he un-bags the ingredients he’d picked up from the shops earlier in the day. He hasn’t even quite started yet but there’s something about the steps, following carefully to achieve the goal of something delicious to nibble on.

He’s been stressed, lately. The new album is coming out soon and they’re in talks to schedule a tour for the upcoming year and it’s just a lot, really. It’s a lot. Harry needs to de-stress and making a mess of the kitchen seems like the perfect place to start.

Rhythmically Harry pulls down measuring cups and sets them out, ordering them meticulously from smallest to largest measurements before he goes digging in the drawer for the measuring spoons, as well. With his tools set out just so, Harry pulls his mixer out from under the cupboard, plugs it in on the countertop and gets seat opening his recipe book to the right page. Harry knows he could make chocolate chip cookies from memory but there’s something about dutifully following all the steps just so that makes him feel calm.

Harry arranges the ingredients – butter, flower, white and brown sugar, eggs – so the labels are all facing outward before he gets to measuring everything out into their little measuring cups, wanting everything ready to go all at once.

“What do we have here?” Comes Louis’ voice from somewhere over Harry’s shoulder. He stops, looking up from where he was just leveling the flour, and smiles at Louis leaning there in the doorway with his arms folded across his chest.

“Nothing,” Harry says, flattening out the top of the measuring cup containing the flour. “Just making some cookies,” he tells Louis before returning his attention back to measuring out the half-cup of flour next.

“What kind?” Louis asks, pushing off the doorway and stepping into the kitchen, coming round to Harry’s side and hopping himself up onto the countertop, heels kicking obnoxiously against the cupboard doors beneath him.

“Chocolate chip and peanut butter,” Harry says, not once losing his focus as he moves on to the brown sugar. “Can help if you want,” Harry tells him, sets the one cup of brown sugar onto the countertop next to the flour.

“I’ll taste-test,” Louis offers, still kicking his feet, but Harry cracks a smile anyway. Louis doesn’t really bode well in the kitchen but Harry doesn’t mind. He enjoys baking and cooking for them and he’s happy to have Louis’ company here anyway.

“Uh huh,” Harry agrees, laughing lightly to himself as he measures out the rest of the ingredients. He sets the two cups of chocolate chips into their dish before going to collect the eggs from where they sit on the counter, warming up to room temperature.

He turns around again in perfect time to see Louis’ fingertips reaching into the dish of chocolate chips, caught in the act, and Harry scoffs at him.

“Oops,” Louis grins, shamelessly tossing a few of the chocolate chips into his mouth anyway. He laughs as Harry pinches his thigh for it, but doesn’t apologize.

“Keep out of the ingredients,” Harry scolds, laughing as well as he shoots a playful glare at Louis for it.

“A few won’t hurt,” Louis shrugs, grinning mischievously at Harry.

“The words ‘a few’ are not in your vocabulary,” Harry laughs, shaking his head as he moves to scoop the butter and brown sugar, peanut butter and white sugar into the mixing bowl. “Moderation is not your forte,” Harry teases as he sets the mixer on to mix the ingredients in together.

“Hey!” Louis scoffs, reaching his foot out to jab Harry in the bum. “I don’t deny myself the nice things in life, let me live,” he teases as he reaches for a few more of the chocolate chips before Harry can take the dish away from him. Harry laughs brightly, knowing the truth in this.

“Here,” Harry says, stopping the mixer and holding an egg out to Louis. “Crack this into the bowl,” he tells him. Louis takes the egg and Harry hears him tapping it to crack the shell against the edge of the bowl while Harry grabs the corn syrup and vanilla.

“Shit,” comes Louis’ voice seconds later and Harry frowns as he comes to look.

“Lou!” He groans, seeing the fragments of shell now sitting in the mixture in the bowl. “Are you serious? It’s not that hard,” he whines a little, even though he can tell Louis doesn’t really feel that bad and is laughing behind his hand as he drops the now-empty egg shell into the sink.

“Sorry,” Louis says, anyway, as he watches Harry pick out the pieces of shell.

“I hope whatever cookie you choose to eat has bits of shell I couldn’t pick out,” Harry says with a frown, looking up at Louis as he drops the shell fragments into the bin beneath the sink. “Lucky you’re cute,” Harry tells him, rolling his eyes gently.

“Am I?” Louis asks, all coy and, Harry must admit, cute. He’s taller than Harry as he’s sat on the countertop but he still makes himself look small as he holds his hands in his lap and blinks down at Harry through his long lashes, fringe falling in his eyes.

“Stop that,” Harry says, shaking his head and turning his back to finish adding in the remaining ingredients, cracking in the last egg and turning the mixer back on to stir it all up together.

“Stop what?” Louis asks and Harry hates that he can hear the coy smile on Louis’ damn lips.

“Playing cute,” Harry says, shaking his head and resolutely _not_ letting himself look at Louis properly because he can see out of the corner of his eye that Louis’ pulled a knee up to his chest and if Harry looks he’s done for. Louis will rest his chin down on the knee he’s hugging against his chest and he’ll look so impossibly cute and Harry will be unable to resist his charm. He’s not going to look.

“I’m not,” Louis tells him and Harry is _weak._ He looks over at Louis, curled up all small and precious on the countertop and Harry feels his knees wobble a little. Louis is so, so beautiful and Harry is so, so in love with him.

“I’m not falling for your tricks,” Harry says in what he hopes is a firm manner but Louis knows Harry is weak for him. “Help me put these on baking sheets,” Harry says as he stops the mixer again and pulls open the drawer to get spoons out.

“So demanding,” Louis teases, foot poking at Harry’s bum again. Louis shuffles back on the countertop a little big to make room for the baking sheet between them before he takes the spoon held out by Harry.

“You’re like Chicken Little or something,” Harry teases as he digs the spoon into the cookie dough to begin forming little round blobs to drop onto the sheet. “A nuisance when it comes to helping but as soon as they’re done baking I know you’re going to scarf a few down,” he grins, looking up at Louis as Louis puts on his faux offended face. It’s cute.

“You love me and you love baking,” Louis tells him, working on dropping his own dough blobs onto the sheet. “It’s a win-win for everyone involved,” he says, poking his tongue between his teeth as he focuses on getting the cookies spaced apart adequately.

Harry can’t argue that one.

When the baking sheet is set in the oven, the timer set, Harry feels Louis’ fingertips curl underneath his t-shirt sleeve and tug him over. Harry smiles, goes easily to step between Louis’ knees where he sits on the countertop.

“Hi,” Harry tells him, not used to having to look up at Louis, but he doesn’t mind. Louis’ arms settle around Harry’s shoulders as he tips their heads together.

“Give me a kiss, please,” Louis says, soft and sweet, a near whisper that’s just for them. Harry can’t help but smile. He brings his arms up to loop around Louis’ waist, steps in closer and tips his head up to press their lips together softly.

It’s rather innocent, sweet, as far as kisses go and Harry loves it. His worries about the album and the maybe-tour are nearly forgotten, if he’s honest, and he knows it’s not entirely due to distracting himself with baking. Louis helps a lot.

“Love you,” Harry tells him, seals it with another soft kiss and a sigh as Louis cards his fingers through Harry’s hair to push it back behind his ear.

“I love you,” Louis says. He pulls back enough to look at Harry properly but keeps his arms around Harry’s shoulders to keep him close. “Don’t stress too much, okay?” Louis tells him, lips pressing a tiny kiss to the tip of Harry’s nose.

“I’m trying,” Harry admits, nodding a bit. “You help, though,” he says, offering a small smile up to Louis. This is nice, he thinks. Intimate and sweet, quiet and just the two of them.

“I try,” Louis nods a bit, bumps their noses together lightly. “Everything’s going to be great,” he says before pressing another kiss to Harry’s lips, deeper and full of more intent than the last kiss.

Harry sighs into it, can’t help the way he presses up against Louis chest to chest just to feel their bodies aligned together. He lets out a tiny little whimper when Louis nips his lip, can’t help but feel the pleasure in it even if Louis’ just trying to tease and distract him from his worries.

“Thanks,” Harry tells him when they pull apart, gives Louis a squeeze to make his point.

“Mm,” Louis nods, grinning down at him. “I’d say you could fuck me right here on this counter but the cookies would burn and I’m hungry,” he says, grinning wolfishly at Harry. Harry groans, whining a bit as Louis gently scratches at the back of his neck.

“You’re the worst,” Harry whines, a bit pathetically, but Louis is actually the worst.

“I know,” Louis nods, laughing and pressing one more kiss to Harry’s lips before pushing at his chest. “Now, go check on those cookies. I want a glass of milk, too,” he says and Harry can’t help but to laugh.

The universe put Louis in his life at exactly the right time and Harry couldn’t be any more grateful for it.


End file.
